goPeer Review for 2024

Peer-to-peer lending is a great solution for those who are looking to borrow and invest money without having to deal with banks. One of the leaders in this industry in Canada is goPeer, and it’s been helping citizens invest by lending money to other Canadians.

In our goPeer review, we’ll evaluate this company’s services and discuss various aspects of peer-to-peer lending. You’ll learn how to apply, and what the pros and cons are, so you can decide whether this is the right solution for you.

What Is Peer-to-Peer Lending?

We can regard peer-to-peer (P2P) websites as marketplaces. Their main goal is to bring together businesses and individuals who plan to lend money to those looking to borrow funds. The latter might require additional funds to consolidate a loan, renovate their home, or repair a car without going to the bank.

As for the lenders, some platforms let them choose whom they want to lend money to, while with others, the amount they lend is divided between several borrowers. When it comes to interest rates, they are usually higher than those that apply to traditional savings accounts.

Many people opt for P2P because no banks are involved, and you are directly connected to borrowers or lenders. Apart from borrowing money, what these platforms provide is a chance to obtain additional passive income with interest rates as an investor. 

What Is goPeer?

Founded by Joseph Buaron and Marc-Antoine Caya in 2019, goPeer has grown to become one of the leading peer-to-peer lending platforms in Canada.

Although P2P has been around for quite some time in other countries, the popularity of this service has increased in the past few years in Canada. Nowadays, goPeer is one of the most reputable companies in the sector.

goPeer has received more than $200 million in applications, and the number of investors on the platform currently exceeds 6,000. As far as investments go, the benefit provided to users is that they have a chance to diversify their portfolios with goPeer P2P and earn money while helping someone else out.

Since no banks are involved, the interest rates are favourable, and borrowers often choose this service because they can get the money quickly. 

goPeer Investing

If you’re looking to diversify your holdings and earn money with higher interest than what you’d get from a regular savings account, you should consider goPeer lending. 

goPeer investors can be non-eligible, eligible, and accredited. The maximum investment for non-eligible investors is $10,000 per year, whereas eligible investors can invest up to $30,000 a year or $100,000 after receiving advice from a portfolio manager. For accredited investors, there is no maximum investment limit.

To qualify as an eligible or accredited investor, you must have an annual income of over $75,000, your net assets must exceed $400,000, or your household income must be over $125,000.

There’s a useful goPeer feature called Auto-Invest, with which your money is automatically invested based on the criteria you’ve defined. This is a convenient option that’s not available from all peer-to-peer lenders in Canada.

It’s intended for people who want to automate their investments without the added hassle of repeating the procedure every time.

On the receiving end, borrowers are assigned grades from A+ to E based on their credit profiles, incomes, and debt levels. The interest rate depends on the delinquency risk, which indicates how likely it is that a particular borrower will miss their payment due date. As the risk of delinquency rises, so does the interest rate.

If you want to learn more about how to earn passively, there are multiple other options available alongside peer-to-peer lending, so be sure to compare the potential benefits.

goPeer P2P Investing Benefits

Through goPeer investing, you can review various loan options, compare interest rates, and choose the best option to invest in. You can also set up an auto-investment feature, which allows the platform to manage your investments automatically according to the criteria that you’ve defined.

These are just some of the benefits goPeer investors get to enjoy:

• The Auto-Invest tool that can save you a lot of time and effort
• goPeer is a regulated platform
• Funds are held in Canadian banks
• Recurring monthly cashflow from repayments
• Portfolio diversification through alternative investments
• Decent earnings while assisting fellow Canadians. 

Drawbacks

There are also certain drawbacks to goPeer, such as its 1.5% servicing fee. Moreover, if borrowers don’t manage to pay back and the collection is triggered, a fee of up to 35% will be charged on the net collected sum. 

You should keep in mind that peer-to-peer is not risk-free. Specifically, committing to a loan will mean that you have to hold the purchased notes until maturity and can’t sell them on secondary markets.

If all of this is a dealbreaker for you, there are still ways for you to invest with limited funds aside from peer-to-peer platforms.

goPeer Borrowing

If you want to begin borrowing from goPeer in Canada, you will be able to get an unsecured personal loan amounting to $1,000-$25,000 with terms ranging from 36 to 60 months.

Interest rates vary and can range anywhere from 8% to 33.92%, depending on your credit score and credit history. Most people use these loans for home renovation, medical expenses, debt consolidation or large purchases. 

goPeer P2P Loan Benefits

Some of the reasons why people choose goPeer are:

• Allowed prepayments: If it’s more convenient for you, you can repay your goPeer loan early without incurring any fees.
• Unsecured loans: You won’t have to provide collateral for this type of loan.
• Favourable interest rates: APR starting from 8%
• Quick online application: You only need internet access and a mobile phone or computer, and you can fill out the application in less than 10 minutes. 

Drawbacks

While goPeer boasts apparent benefits, there are some shortcomings to consider as well: 

• Only fair to good credit score is accepted. 
• Origination fee up to 5%.
• Late payment fees ($15 or 5% of the unpaid installment), unsuccessful payment fees ($25), and cheque processing fees ($7). 
• The average interest rate is 16.7%.

goPeer Application Process and Requirements

The goPeer application process is similar to that of other P2P lenders. You can apply via mobile app, mobile browser or computer browser. When you go to the goPeer website and click on Apply Today, first you’ll need to fill out a personal questionnaire. 

You’ll be asked about the desired sum you’d like to obtain ($1,000-$25,000), the purpose of the loan, and will be taken to the page where you’ll fill out your personal information. goPeer will ask you to agree to a hard credit check before answering questions about your identity and financial history, and you’re done. 

In order to qualify, you need to:

• Be 18 or older
• Have an income over $15,000 per year
• Have a credit score of 600 or more
• Have an active bank account in a Canadian bank
• Be a Canadian resident for at least three years 

On the other hand, if you plan to invest, you should click on the Start Investing button and then select Personal or Company. If you opt for Personal, you will fill out a questionnaire about your experience in investing, your net worth, and risk tolerance, among other things.

A similar procedure applies if you select Company. The application can be completed in 10 minutes or less, and after you finish, you will be contacted by goPeer.

Is goPeer Legit? 

Yes, goPeer is a completely legitimate company. Although goPeer provides information about how the company is regulated, you can always double-check those facts by reading goPeer reviews and doing your own research. 

Headquartered in Toronto, this P2P company is a regulated platform registered in all Canadian provinces. It is compliant with the regulations set by The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada.

Moreover, goPeer’s operations are subject to all federal laws as well as provincial laws of the jurisdictions where they offer services.

Bottom Line

Overall, goPeer is a great P2P solution for those who would like to borrow money without having to deal with banks. It’s also perfect for those who want to invest by helping out fellow Canadians. That’s why more and more people are turning to the P2P option. 

While there are drawbacks, such as eligibility criteria that borrowers must fulfil, namely that they must have good credit scores, goPeer is definitely a solid option if you’re looking for peer-to-peer loans in Canada.